Buying guides
Solid versus engineered: which timber floor is right for you
Engineered is not the cheap option. It is the stable one — which matters more in some houses than others.
By PRESTIGEWOOD team
A solid board is one piece of timber. An engineered board is a timber wear layer bonded to a plywood core. The difference that matters is movement: the plywood core moves far less with humidity than solid timber does.
That makes engineered the right answer over concrete slabs, over heating, and anywhere the house swings between wet and dry. Solid still wins where you want the floor sanded back several times over decades.
The usual objection is that engineered feels like a compromise. It is not. A 6 mm wear layer can be sanded three or four times, which is more than most floors ever get.